Castro, Colombian Businessmen Review Trade

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FL2706235094
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[Editorial Report] Havana Cuba Vision Network in Spanish at
0033 GMT on 25 June carries a recording of President Fidel
Castro's 16 June meeting with Colombian businessmen in Cartagena
de Indias, Colombia, following the closure of the Fourth
Ibero-American Summit. Castro is wearing a guayabera and is
seated at a long table with various persons on either side,
facing approximately 60 businessmen and officials who are
attending the meeting.

President Castro begins the meeting with the following
statement: "We are here full of hope for encouraging this
fraternal, friendly spirit that has been created, the
perspectives that have opened. The only thing I really deplore
about this is that we are not the PRC instead of Cuba. Cuba is
tiny; it is a small country, while the PRC is enormous, millions
of square km, with a population of 1.2 billion. All the
businessmen, industrialists, and investors want to go there, to
the PRC. Cuba is small, but we can certainly do something in
Cuba. We can fulfill a principle, above all -- to develop
economic, friendship, cooperation, trade, and peace relations
among nations. We can encourage economic and trade ties.

``We are willing to cooperate based on one essential thing,
seriousness. I can tell you that whatever can be done in Cuba
will be done with absolute and total seriousness by us. Since
this is the case, I am sure you want to know about many things.
I will not tell you about the summit. The newspapers have
already reported it. Perhaps we can appoint a moderator. Whom do
we appoint governor? No, not governor, [chuckles] moderator. He
must play the role of governor to act as moderator here.''

Castro and those seated at the main table speak softly among
themselves and decide who will be appointed to act as moderator.
Castro is heard commenting: "He must have tremendous experience."

An unidentified moderator in the front row stands and begins
by "cordially greeting" Castro "on behalf of the business
community in Cartagena and the region;" adding that "the
resumption of diplomatic and trade relations between Colombia
and Cuba" led to "unusual intensive activity. In Cartagena de
Indias' case, this was a result of the declaration of sisterhood
signed between Santiago de Cuba and Cartagena de Indias." He
adds: "The Cuban ambassador and his cultural and trade" attaches
have already visited Cartagena de Indias and participated in "a
series of meetings that have already shown various excellent
perspectives" between this region and Cuba.

The moderator says the meeting is being attended by
representatives of many business groups in the region -- large
and small industries, hotels, stores, investment firms,
fisheries, etc. -- and "they want to comment on the possibility
of establishing trade with Cuba. They also have questions
concerning issues they have already reviewed with the Cuban
ambassador," including "the mechanisms that will be implemented
to facilitate these relations." The moderator asks businessmen
to stand up, identify themselves, and give the name of the
company or activity they represent.

Miguel Parra stands up, introduces himself, and says he is
"the owner of Milpa Investments, which operates coal mines in
the central part of the country" and has "been doing business
with the Cuban company MAPRINTER [Cuban Raw Materials and
Intermediate Products Import Enterprise], a branch of the
Foreign Trade Ministry, for the last two years. Within this time
we have sent 23 shipments -- worth over $4 million -- of this
product to Cuba, through the port of Barranquilla." Parra then
mentions the medal he was given by the Cuban Government at the
1992 international fair in Havana, in a ceremony that was
personally attended by Castro.

Parra specifically asks "the Colombian people,
industrialists, and businessmen to have faith in Cuba, to
believe in Cuba, to pay little attention to international
propaganda because, in our case and with the experience acquired
in two and a half years, we have realized that what the
international media shows is not reality. Cuba is a country with
credibility; it is serious concerning its commitments, as the
president has said. In fact, on three occasions, we shipped
merchandise without a confirmed letter of credit. This does not
mean Cuba does not have the money to pay because Cuba pays us
when it pledges to buy something. Instead, due to the blockade
we all repudiate, we have to go the long way around, through
other countries, to legalize our operations in U.S. dollars; and
this obviously delays the procedure. Today, in fact, we are
sending a shipment of our product -- coke coal -- to Cuba and we
are doing it without having received the letter of credit
confirmed by the president. But I repeat, this does not mean you
do not fulfill your pledges."

Castro says: "We can stay here as a guarantee." [laughter,
applause]

Parra says he and Mayra Tomas, MAPRINTER official, already
have plans to establish a port in Barranquilla that "will
expedite coal shipments" and give priority to Cuban ships or any
ships chartered in other countries, "to overcome the gap that
has occurred in maritime transportation." He explains that
Thomas has already managed to get various ships to send
refractory bricks and other products to Cuba. He promises Castro
that a port will legally operate in Barranquilla soon and that
the facilities will be at his service so he may use them to ship
all the Colombian products he wants to Cuba.

Castro says: "Thank you, thank you. [applause] Which Cuban
industry is using this coal right now? The steel industry?"

Parra answers: "It is used to manufacture gas for domestic
use; it is used in the steel industry, in foundries, to
manufacture acetylene. It is specifically used by Minaz
[Ministry of the Sugar Industry] industries...."

Castro interrupts: "And the metalworks industry and basic
industry, particularly the one that manufactures gas for the
population in an old plant we have over there."

The next speaker is Carlos Banegas, manager of Exclusive
Minerals, who invites Colombian businessmen to buy Cuban
products and explains that he is the local distributor of Cuban
zeolite, which is used in the agriculture sector, "to
manufacture fodder, soft drink filters, and beer filters."
Speaking of trade with Cuba, he says his company has "imported
3,000 tons of zeolite this year" and has plans to import 5,000
tons by year end. Banegas says he is also the local
representative for a new Cuban product, a vaccine to innoculate
bovines against ticks. He said "protocol research has been
conducted" and its sale should be approved in a month, when it
will be available in the local market. Banegas adds that his
company expects to initially sell "5 million doses of this
vaccine in Colombia."

Banegas is followed by Freddy Lehner, manager of BIOLEHNER,
local representative of the Genetic Engineering and
Biotechnology Center's recombinant vaccine against hepatitis.

Castro turns to Banegas and asks: "What is yours?"

Banegas answers: "A vaccine against bovine ticks."

Castro adds: "Ah, yes, the vaccine against ticks. It is very
important and yields good economic results."

Lehner says the Colombian Health Ministry has purchased "a
large number of hepatitis B vaccine doses for a large-scale
vaccination program" in the country; adding he is also the local
representative for the Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
Center's (Eyverkinasa), which is a recombinant streptokinase
used in case of a heart attack; (Evermin), which is an epidermic
growth factor; and Interferon.

Castro states: "(Ateromixol) comes from another center. It
is
the famous PPG [expansion unknown]."

Lehner suggests that it be called (Ateromixol) in Colombia
rather than PPG.

Castro replies: "Yes. Coincidentially, the name was
arbitrarily invented when they were involved in its research.
One day they went to register a product in Spain and discovered
a product named PPG in Spain. Imagine, what a coincidence. So
many letters, so many combinations; yet they could not register
it as PPG, but it is known as PPG almost everywhere."

Lehner smiles and says: "I am always asked why the product
is
called PPG, but I still do not know."

Castro answers: "It was an arbitrary decision, yet people
invent names for the PPG."

Lehner says his company is also the local representative for
the Carlos J. Finlay Institute's meningococci vaccine, which was
tested with "excellent" results in Antioquia, where 20,000
children were inoculated with doses donated by the Cuban
Government.

Castro says: "That vaccine is important because meningococci
disease sows terror. It is not only a matter of how many
children are saved, which is priceless, but the fear this
disease instills in the family. It involves millions of people,
parents, siblings, uncles, everyone. Whenever a person sees a
child with fever or any symptom, he immediately thinks about the
possibility of meningococci. We eradicated that scourge, that
terror in our country precisely as a result of that vaccine. The
use of this vaccine has expanded considerably; it is being sold
in Argentine. Its sale is being discussed with the Brazilians
and other countries. It is a product with many perspectives."

Lehner explains that the Colombian authorities are working
hard to inoculate children in rural areas and poor sectors,
adding that maningococci cases have been detected in
Barranquilla, Buenaventura, Cali, and Cartagena de Indias, and
every effort is being made so the people learn about this
vaccine.

Castro states: "It is the only vaccine of its kind in the
world. The same goes for the tick vaccine. It too is the only
one of its kind. We have people working there, wracking their
brains, to see how they can help the country counter its
difficult situations. We have made important investments in the
research sector. We are now completing the construction of a
center that has already begun to produce monoclonal antibodies.
These are tremendously important, not only for the diagnosis of
diseases, but also for the struggle against cancer, where new
theories and possibilities have appeared.

``I think there is a possibility of finding a cancer
vaccine,
above all, one dealing with viruses. The goal is to find
specific antibodies that directly attack malignant cells because
the medicine available right now attacks all the cells and has
damaging side effects. Nevertheless, I think the center we are
completing right now has a possibility of doing this because it
will be one of the leading centers, one of the best centers in
the world. I am glad we were able to help. I am glad we were
able to meet; it is a pleasure. I am proud that [words
indistinct] symbolically representing [words indistinct]''

An unidentified speaker asks about AIDS research in Cuba,
to which Castro answers: "Yes, we are working on AIDS, too.
Research began in the very beginning and we have achieved great
success concerning AIDS. It is a terrible threat right now and
apparently, it is very difficult to control because it is a
mutant virus. A mutant virus is difficult because you may find
the way to attack a specific type of virus -- for example the
flu virus -- but if it mutates, it becomes another type of
virus. [Words indistinct] using Interferon, an antiviral [words
indistinct] from blood, and we have been using special measures
to prevent its propagation because AIDS spreads like wildfire.
Sometimes all it takes is one case to infect 30, 40, or 50
persons. People have a mentality. Sometimes they ignore this,
granted, but we know of cases in which people know they are
infected, but do not care if others become infected. The
situation concerning that disease is truly dramatic and everyone
has a responsibility to work on AIDS, cancer, parasites, and
virus research.

``We are trying to find a multiple vaccine that immunizes a
person against many diseases with a single dose. We are trying
to do this through genetic engineering, which will perfect the
vaccine. We now have the maningococci vaccine and the hepatitis
vaccine through genetic engineering, just as we have the
streptokinase through genetic engineering. Just see the
difference between this and the natural product. Some people
manufacture it from natural products, extracting the serum from
people and all that, but what does a dose cost? $1,500. How much
does a dose of streptokinase cost? More than $300 -- I do not
know what the current price is, but the cost is five times less
when the same medicine is a result of genetic engineering.

``I am taking this opportunity to tell you that part of the
medicine we currently export to Colombia is destined to pay some
old debts that are still pending. We intend to honor our
commitments and pay some debts this way. I believe the
possibilities are many because you have a large population -- 30
million, or more than 30 million.''

The moderator says: "33 million."

Castro exclaims: "How you have grown! You were half that
many
a few years ago. You also have different climates -- tropical,
temperate -- and yours is one of the countries most concerned
about people's health. Let me tell you, the recent Colombian
Governments have been most concerned about health programs."

The last speaker is Rizo, president of the Cartagena de
Indias Chamber of Commerce, who has reviewed Cuba's progress in
the technology, science, and engineering sectors. Colombia has
achieved various degrees of development, which entails various
degrees of technology. Rizo says he "believes an enormous
exchange of technology could occur between Cuba and Colombia in
this concern," and he would like to exchange information with
Cuban professionals, engineers, and consultation firms. This
would enable them to carry out excellent work, both in Cuba and
Colombia because "if there is something Cuba has done, it has
been to improve the quality of people's lives. We still have a
lot of people whose quality of life must be improved, and
advanced technology is too expensive for them."

Castro asks: "Does this include low-cost housing?"

Rizo answers: "Yes, Sir."

Castro emphasizes: "You must work hard to find solutions, to
build low-cost houses, as we call them."

Rizo says this also includes sewers, aqueducts,
communication, roads, and all the services needed for a better
lifestyle.

The meeting ends with Castro's statement: "I wanted to tell
you I feel very satisfied about this meeting with you. The
Fourth Ibero-American Summit has just been held. Its main goal
was integration, and we are specifically working on issues
dealing with our two countries' integration. We have achieved
progress and who knows how far we can go -- until one day we are
fully integrated. We should strive to be fully integrated, and
we must first do it with our neighbors. As I said, the flight
from Havana to Santiago in a turbo- prop aircraft takes
practically as long as the trip from Havana to Cartagena de
Indias in a jet aircraft. I was astonished by this. I had not
realized this even though I was here recently. This time, I sat
down, read some papers, and chatted for awhile, and suddenly we
were landing here. The communications revolution has brought us
closer.

We are very similar; at least we are quite similar to the
people in Cartagena de Indias, perhaps because we live in a
warmer, more tropical climate. Maybe the people in Santa Fe de
Bogota are not so communicative because they live on a plateau
and it is colder over there. It is colder there, and I am told
the city has grown so much and there is so much cement that it
is now like Mexico City, where the average temperature has
increased. We are very much alike however, and it is a truly
promising step to discover there are so many possibilities for
getting closer, working together, developing the economy
together.

``Once again, we have reason to dream what our liberators
dreamed of -- that one day our Latin American nations would be
united, a strong united front. We speak the same language, have
the same culture, and we can speak here without translators. We
know we can talk, while it is difficult to do this in the world
today if you do not speak another language. If we have no other
choice but to learn English, then we will learn English. In the
end, it is not our fault that the English were great colonizers
and spread the language throughout Asia, Africa, Canada, and
other places. We will do this to speak with the others, with
outsiders, but we only need to speak Spanish among ourselves --
except for one or two words that have different meanings here
and there. It is a language in which we can perfectly well
understand one another. What an advantage this is for becoming
closer; what an advantage for us to unite; what an advantage for
becoming a union someday. When I have a meeting like this, I
believe more than ever in the things I have always believed in.
Thank you.'' [applause]
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